Top seed Ricardo Campello, who won the last PWA World Cup in Pozo in 2019, gave young Mike Friedl no chance in Heat 16a in his first heat of the contest. The reigning champion landed a perfect double forward and a tweaked pushloop to take the highest score of the day - 21.24 points. The 37-year-old will now face Miguel Chapuis in the round of 16 after the young Spaniard defeated local hero Omar Sanchez.
From a German perspective, Julian Salmonn came through the second round against Japan's Takara Ishii with aplomb. It was much closer for Leon Jamaer, who ultimately managed to hold his nerve against Frenchman Arthur Arutkin. Alessio Stillrich was unable to find his power moves in the rather moderate conditions and was narrowly beaten by veteran Dieter van der Eyken. In the round of the last 16, Julian Salmonn then had to face one of the not-so-secret favourites again yesterday: Marc Paré. The Spaniard is in top form in Pozo and confidently beat Salmonn, who lives in Tenerife. Leon Jamaer now awaits his NeilPryde team-mate Robby Swift in the last 16 - it's sure to be a tight contest for a place in the quarter-finals.
Köster in playing mood at the PWA World Cup
The PWA World Cup year didn't get off to a particularly good start for Philip Köster. He was eliminated early on at the event in Cape Verde and only finished in 25th place - which meant that all his title dreams had already been dashed, as there is a maximum of four wave events this year and therefore no scratch result. The sixth title is therefore a long way off. At his home spot - Köster now lives directly in Pozo with his small family - he quickly returned to his outstanding form, however. In one of the first heats of the day in round two against the Frenchman Alex Grand-Guillot, he had no problems at the start: his first jump score with an almost perfect double loop gave him confidence and put his opponent off his stride.
With conditions getting worse and worse, Philip then had to compete against Dieter van der Eyken in the round of 16. But he didn't miss a beat, starting on a 99-litre board with a 5.3 sail and was therefore well powered up most of the time. He managed the best double forward of the event so far and his wave scores were also outstanding for the prevailing conditions, making him one of the very few to score more than 20 points in his heat at the PWA World Cup. At the end of the heat he even started to play on the wave and celebrated a Willy Skipper. And when Köster starts playing, it's always bad news for the competition.
In the round of the last eight, however, things will now get really serious, as Köster will face Marc Paré. The 24-year-old missed the PWA World Cup in Cape Verde due to an injury and is highly motivated for the Cup in Pozo. Many insiders believe he is capable of winning, as he has all the jumps and wave moves that are needed in Pozo. So it will be extremely exciting if the forecast wind actually materialises today.
Dunkerbeck Junior in his father's footsteps
At the age of 18, Liam Dunkerbeck could still be competing in the juniors, but he prefers to compete in the men's category. The son of windsurfing legend and event organiser Björn has grown enormously in the last two years - both in terms of height and strength, but above all in terms of his riding skills. In round one, he confidently prevailed against the French youngster Titouan Flechet. In the second round, he faced Antoine Martin from Guadeloupe, who was seeded and highly rated. It was extremely close and it was only in the final run that Liam caught a ramp for a somewhat wild but almost perfect double loop and ultimately beat Martin by just 0.31 points.
Dunki Jr. now has to face Hawaiian Morgan Noureaux in the last 16. A difficult but not insurmountable task. Proud father Björn will certainly prepare him well. Mega-talent Marino Gil also almost made it into the last 8. The 19-year-old Pozo local put up a rousing fight against co-favourite Marcilio Brown, but was unable to find a ramp for a double loop at the end of the heat and was visibly frustrated at not being able to take advantage of this opportunity. In the end, he was less than 0.4 points short of a sensation at the PWA World Cup.
Will the PWA World Cup be decided today?
For this Friday - as for the weekend - the forecast promises stronger winds again. The PWA World Cup organisers are hoping that the Single Elemination can be completed today and then, with luck, the Double will go ahead at the weekend.
Today the skippers meeting is at 11am our time and the first start can take place at 11.30am if the conditions are right. All information and the livestream can be found at: www.pwaworldtour.com
